St. Paul tells the Corinthians in today’s Epistle reading, “We are fools for Christ’s sake.” St. Paul was very respected, a Pharisee of Pharisees. However, when Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus, all human prestige became “rubbish” compared to the surpassing worth of knowing the Lord. In his sermon, Fr. Gregory addresses this statement and the concept of foolishness, which has deep Biblical roots.
This concept of foolishness applies to us today, too. In a world obsessed with competence, success, and image, Christ calls us to humility, obedience, and self-sacrificial love — a life that can sometimes be misunderstood, ridiculed, or called foolish. The prophets, the apostles, the martyrs, the saints, and our Lord most of all bore this burden. May we have the courage to follow them, accepting when necessary the world’s laughter, knowing that, in heaven, such fools are crowned with glory. “Let us all be willing to be considered a little foolish for Christ in the eyes of the world,” Fr. Gregory concludes.
